Things Are Better Now
by Laura x Tennant
Summary: Sort of the next bit that happens after my previous story 'And this is when he breaks the rules.' Hope you like it :D
1. Dreaming Is Different

**Things Are Better Now**

**Chapter 1 – Dreaming Is Different**

He wakes up, and realises that he slept the whole night without dreaming of the Time War. Without dreaming of Gallifrey. Without dreaming of fire, and darkness, and Daleks and his own monstrous actions. All the things that were the reasons why he avoided sleep before, so that he could try to forget. He didn't forget. But now...now he forgets. She's made him better. He doesn't have nightmares anymore.

This keeps happening.

Instead, he dreams of the woman still asleep next to him. He dreams of her golden blonde hair, and her chocolate brown eyes, and the way she smiles at him like he is the only one for her. He dreams of the way she places her hand in his, the way they fit together so perfectly. He dreams of how she licks her lips and pokes out her tongue at him when she's teasing him, and how her expression exudes empathy when she's comforting him. He dreams of her, always.

And then he wakes up, and she's there with him, beside him. His arm wrapped around her waist, her leg wrapped around his. Leaning in to each other, holding each other, feeling each other. And he smiles.

This keeps happening.

And he loves it.

**A/N: Hope you like the brief introduction to the story. More chapters to come; I hope you enjoy :D**


	2. Waking Up Is Different

**Chapter 2 – Waking Up Is Different**

She stirs in his arms and looks up at him dreamily, disbelieving he has actually stayed with her, again. He stares at her, and traces her jaw line with his finger, teasingly.

"Good morning," he whispers.

"Morning," she replies, yawning softly, "Something happened again. Last night."

"Indeed," he replies, smiling softly.

"Are you okay?" she asks him.

She doesn't think he minds. In fact, she thinks he loves this new aspect of their relationship. But she asks anyway. Just in case he wants a get-out clause.

"Oh yes. Never been better, to be honest. I feel...I feel brilliant. And very, very comfortable, so please don't ask me to move."

"Oh, look at you. Getting all domestic. I wonder if it's a Sunday morning. It feels like a Sunday morning."

"It is somewhere," he winks, then pauses, "But...erm...what's so special about Sunday mornings?"

"Well. Nothing, really. But humans like to have lie-ins on Sundays, cuddled up with the person they-" she stops herself from saying it. He looks at her questioningly. "Went to bed with," she finishes. That's safer, she thinks. He nods.

"Weelll, I guess you've been a bad influence on me then, haven't you? Cos I really, _really, _shouldn't prefer lying here, being all lazy like you, to rushing around saving the universe from a...oh, I don't know...a _slitheen _or something trying to turn everyone into...something. Oh dear. You see? I can't even be bothered to make up a story of impending doom. Honestly, Rose Tyler-"

She cuts off his rambles nonsense with a kiss. He then acknowledges that he doesn't care that for the last few days, _she _has been the one dragging him out of bed, bouncing around, wanting the next adventure. And _he's _been the one with an exhausted expression, rubbing his eyes, unaccustomed to such sleepiness. He is a Time Lord, after all. Superior biology and all that. Though, Rose doubts this is actually true right now.

After each day has been spent running from and towards various alien lifeforms - or in one case, that very suspicious looking sheepdog – and stopping multitudes of invasions, explosions and that terrifying, drunk, karaoke-singing _Rose_ from jumping him in the middle of that bar on Soliaj...well, other things happened. They both pretended it was perfectly normal for them to tear at each other's clothes and kiss passionately against the console room walls. And in many ways, it was. For the past week it's been normal. But never ordinary; never boring. It's fantastic, and exciting and passionate, and, he thinks, he's never experienced anything quite like it before. Then, when they wake up in her bed - or his, depending on what was closest - they look at each other and she giggles. He presses a kiss to her forehead, then her cheeks, then her lips; she drags him out of bed and the day's schedule repeats. Everything is the same as before, but a little bit different. Good different. A little extra activity on the itinerary. Which results in him being very...well. He's positively _knackered._ And she...she seems to be very, very excitable. And very happy. So is he. He likes a happy Rose.

Therefore, he does not mind one little bit that she is very happily running her tongue across his neck, and moving her hands below the covers.

In actual fact, not one little bit of him remembers why he thought that them, doing this, would be impossible, unattainable, inappropriate. Not one little bit of him actually remembers his name, right then, with her doing that...

And then remembers. And then he remembers something else. And she should know.

"Rose?" he murmurs, pulling her hands up and joining them with his.

"Yeah?" she's momentarily confused, and then he's looking at her so intently that she forgets how to breathe.

He leans forward and whispers something into her ear. Something. Something and nothing. It doesn't necessarily mean anything. Not anymore. He hasn't been called that....well. Not for a long time. No one who is still alive in this universe knows except him. And now her. Because he's told her. Not because he wants her to call him that, not because he wants her to feel afraid, not because he feels like he has to tell her all his secrets. Just...because. She's Rose.

She exhales. Rose knows immediately what he is telling her, and she feels a wave of happiness settle inside her as she appreciates that he trusts her enough with this. After all, words have power. And so do names. She knows she'll never utter the word, the name, to anyone – not even to him. But she knows.

She smiles her warm, grateful smile, and he kisses her. And the universe hasn't imploded, yet. Despite all this dancing, despite all this sharing...despite the Doctor being content enough to just embrace Rose and not chase the next adventure...the universe has not imploded. All is in equilibrium. All is well.

Perhaps this was always meant to be. Perhaps she was always the one who would know. The only one. Does she realise that? Does she know that he lo-

"Doctor," she says softly, interrupting his thoughts.

"Yes, Rose?"

"You know this...thing that keeps happening?"

"Yes?" he chuckles.

"Is it gonna be a...erm...regular thing? Like, I know it is now, but will this...will this always happen?"

"Why, don't you want it to?"

"Oh, yeah, I'd love it to," she replies hastily, "I just thought...well, I don't know. It's just, well..."

"Do you like it?"

"Yeah. A lot, actually. Do you?"

"Definitely."

"That's good."

"Good."

They lie there, gazing at each other silently, his hand trailing up and down her arm making her shiver. They are content. There is silence. Until the Doctor decides to tell her something else.

"Rose. Rose you should...I should..."

"What, Doctor?"

"Weeelll, you know, that...um..."

"Doctor. Spit it out."

"Er, well, I was just going to say that...Oh, I'm no good at this. It's just...Rose, I lo-"

And that is precisely when fate decides that chaos should erupt. The TARDIS lurches, the cloister bell rings, the room descends into darkness and the pair of bewildered space-time travellers falls out of their – their? Yes....their - bed onto the floor with a crash. And then...there's silence. Well, almost silence. With the Doctor positioned so that his naked body is lying heavily on top of Rose's equally naked body, there is quite a lot of shaky panting going on. The Doctor mentally shakes his head and jumps up, reaching down in the darkness to pull Rose to her feet.

"Typical," he mutters, and attempts to find his clothes.

**A/N: Hope you're enjoying the story. Reviews are loved :D**


	3. Getting Dressed Is Different

**Chapter 3 – Getting Dressed Is Different**

"_Typical," he mutters, and attempts to find his clothes. _

Rose pulls on his arm and whispers, somewhat embarrassed, "I think...I think I removed your clothes somewhere out in the corridor..."

"Ah. Yes. That's right," he replies. He touches her face and brushes her hair from her eyes, a gesture the both of them are quite accustomed to but never used to acknowledge its meaning. But they know. The fact that he can still do that in the dark, trace the line of her face with his fingers, proves that he knows her rather well now, he thinks. And he knows that she's blushing. "Rose? Why are you blushing?"

"I'm not." She is. She's not sure why.

"Oh, ok," he accepts, and then presses a gentle kiss to her mouth, "It's perfectly fine, you know. You don't need to feel...come on, let's go find our clothes," he murmurs against her mouth. And she feels his eyelashes flutter against her cheek, and knows he's winking. She giggles.

They stumble around, bumping into doors and walls - and occasionally each other, which is something they both quite enjoy, but most definitely don't do on purpose.

Most definitely.

Maybe.

Finally, they reach the console room, and the Doctor has his shirt half buttoned up and his jumping into his left trouser leg. Rose has her vest top and jeans on, but no underwear. She's not sure where that went. Possibly somewhere up there, she thinks, looking up at the ledge around the console room. The Doctor, when in a hurry, is very good at chucking things in any haphazard direction, losing them forever. They've both learnt quite quickly that he's especially talented at losing Rose's clothes.

He runs around the room, twisting buttons and pulling levers and squinting at the console screen.

"Here," says Rose handing over his – very sexy – pair of glasses.

"Than- What? Why do you have my glasses?"

"Same reason I've got your tie," she replies as she loops it over her own neck. Now _that _had been an interesting game. She shivers in excitement just remembering it.

"Ah. Quite right." He stays still, watching her, his thoughts flickering back to last night. Then he remembers what he's supposed to be doing and puts his glasses on, looking back at the screen.

"This is the second time it's happened. A sudden, random, crash that wasn't to do with your bad driving -" begins Rose.

"Oi!" he interrupts.

She sticks her tongue out at him and laughs, then says, "So...What's the problem? Who's tried to kidnap us _now?_"

"Weeellll...I'm not sure. It looks like...but no. It can't be. No. No no no nononono...No! No way! Oh dear..."

Rose goes from being amused at his rambling answer to panicking about the anxiety in his voice.

"What? Doctor, what? What is it? Who is it?"

"Erm..."

"Doctor?"

"Weelll...."

"Doctor! Tell me!"

"We have a tiny, _tiny_ problem..."

"What's wrong?"

"We've been summoned."

"By who?"

"The Shadow Proclamation."

"The what what?"

"The Shadow Proclamation...they're sort of in charge of the universe. Weeelll, they like to think they are. Have these laws and authority and stuff, which everyone has to abide by."

"So...why have you been summoned?"

"Why have _we_ been summoned you mean. You live here; we're in this together, now," and as he says it he realises he probably shouldn't have. He wants her to be here, with him, forever - but he knows that she might decide to go home one day. Her real home. This home, the TARDIS, could be temporary. His hearts clench a little at the thought that she might leave him. She's part of his life now. She_ is_ his life now. She's part of him.

Her heart does a little jump as she acknowledges that he considers her as far more than just a passenger. She lives here now. She's part of this. She knows that whatever these people want, they can't possibly want her, because they transported the TARDIS, which they would know can't have a human aboard. Not as a pilot, anyway. So they must want the Doctor; the Time Lord. And although she knows this, the Doctor wants her to feel like she is part of this adventure as much as him. And that thrills her to her very bones.

"Right. Why have _we _been summoned?" she amends, smiling at him.

"I...I don't know."

"Oh. Great. You could've just told me that straight away, you know," she says, mock sternly.

"Sorry. Now. Come on, we better go out or the Judoon will barge right in..."

"The Judoon? Anyway, I thought you said no one could get in here?"

"Out-of-space police. Look like walking, talking rhinos. Remember not to stare," he says, ignoring her latter question as he walks towards the TARDIS doors.

"Er...Doctor?" she says, pulling him back.

"Don't worry. We'll be fine. I can speak their language, and they are reasonable people – weelll, reasonable rhinos...hmmm I like that: 'reasonable rhinos' –anyway, they won't hurt us. Probably won't anyway. As long as you don't-"

"Doctor. I wasn't gonna say anything like that. What I was _going _to say, was that you should button up your shirt _properly,"_ he looks down as her fingers unbutton and re-button the buttons in their correct button-holes, " do up your flies," he gulps as she does what she says, "and wear your tie...if your gonna meet the Law, you have to look presentably, Doctor. Not like you've just...well, you know."

He looks at her, his eyes wistful as she removes his tie from around her neck and ties in round his, adjusting his collar. This is all very domestic.

He doesn't care.

He wants to go back to bed.

But he's the Doctor, he's a _Time Lord, _and he has things to see and people to do, he thinks. No, that's not quite right. He has things to see and Rose to do. Damn, wrong again. What is up with him? He has things to do and people to see, he finally corrects himself. Oh dear.

He clears his throat, smiles his manic Doctor-ish grin and says, "Thanks!"

What would I do without you, he thinks.

"You're welcome," she smiles back at him, and takes his hand, "Don't know _what _you'd do without me. Come on then! Things to do, people to see!" he pauses for a second admiring her suspiciously, wondering how she manages to get it right first time. She's not even flustered.

Right. Back to sophisticated, dignified, not _remotely_ aroused Time Lord, now, he tells himself.

As if he could.

"Yep! Alons-y!" he says, dispelling all – weeelll, _most_ – of the indecent thoughts of a naked Rose that currently occupy his brain. He's got to get better at this. He used to be able to have a thousand unrelated thoughts running through his head every minute. Now he has just as many thoughts, except these all require him and Rose to be on their bed. Or not. Wherever, really.

Oh dear.

**A/N: Haha, poor Doctor getting all flustered lol. I'm always eager to hear response on this story, so if you have any comments please review :D**


	4. Adventures Are Mostly The Same

**Chapter 4 - Adventures Are Mostly The Same**

When they step out of the TARDIS, commotion converges around them.

Lights are flashing in their faces, and Rose feels like she's a celebrity being bombarded by paparazzi. There are no rhinos, she notes, but there are some very strange looking things – kind of giant gerbil-like -in their place, poking and prodding at the two travellers like they are miracles of matter. He squeezes her hand in subtle reassurance.

"Woah there! Calm it down a bit! What's wrong? What's going on? Where are -" he pauses as the flashing ceases, and he can see it, "Ah."

Rose follows his gaze and sees through the glass wall in front of them that there is a room, looking rather too clean and clinical for her liking, in which someone has evidently been subjected to some sort of experiment, judging by the wires, straps and pads and such all connected to machines.

"Ah..." the Doctor repeats, tugging his ear.

"What's happening, Doctor?" Rose asks, tentatively.

"Weeelll..."

One of the giant gerbil-like creatures answers for him, "Things a bit wrong have gone. You are who? You got here how? Help us you can?"

"I can see that. The Doctor. Was hoping you could tell me. And yes," the Doctor answers the creature's backward questions.

"The leaders of the Shadow Proclamation vanished, The Doctor, and the Judoon sure to follow was. No one left. Me is The Uloa Orlob. Leader of Ruxican 5. These," he gestures to the other gerbil-like creatures around them, "my fellow Ruxicans are. Me leader, they serve. You fix?"

"Right. Well, The Uloa Orlob, we'll try to fix this...problem. But I need to know the details. When? Where? How?" the Doctor replies.

"Night it was. No one saw. Just disappeared. Prison cell was us. Us not bad, though. Us test subjects," the creature shudders, and Rose feels a pang of sorrow for it.

"Why were you being experimented on?" she asks.

"They check if we correct. To be processed. Change coming. Need Ruxicans. Ruxicans no friends have. No one miss them would."

This makes Rose angry.

"What? That's not fair. Is that what they told you? That 'you won't be missed, so let us mess with your minds?' "

Suddenly, another voice commands attention from behind them. The Doctor recognises her as one of the leaders of the Shadow Proclamation.

"Yes it is. They are right. No one would miss them," she says coldly, and as she speaks she casts a shining light in their direction. The gerbil-like creatures vanish for an instant, then reappear, looking very sorrowful, on the opposite side of the glass, in the experimentation room.

Rose spins around and steps forward, releasing the Doctor hand.

"What?" she says.

"No one would miss them," the woman repeats.

"Oh. So that gives you people an excuse to _experiment_ on them? Just because they won't be _missed? _Everybody's _missed. _Not one person in this universe can have no one to miss them."

"They don't have anyone."

"What about each other? The Uloa Orlob, and his fellow Ruxicans? They'd miss each other wouldn't they?" she stops her ranting as she feels the Doctor rest his hand against her lower back. He pulls her back towards him a little.

"Who are you? What gives you the right to come here and argue with me?" declares the woman angrily.

"I'm Rose Tyler, and I think what you're doing is -"

"Rose..." the Doctor warns quietly. He's rather bemused by the fact that Rose appears to be taking charge here. He should step in, really. But he decides that she wants to have her say, and he should let her. He'll just save her before she gets thrown into an alien jail. Or executed. He shivers. Better step in now, actually. Jeopardy-friendly, is Rose, and the Shadow Proclamation are not exactly known for their compassion and understanding.

"I have every right. Just because I'm human-" Rose says.

"Oh, you've done it now," he whispers into her ear, before stepping in front of her.

"Human? _Human?_" the woman cackles in front of them.

"Yep!" the Doctor says, popping the 'p,' "Rose is human. And Rose is right. What are you doing to these people? Why are you doing it?"

"They are to be processed."

"Processed? Processed? What does that _mean?_"

"It means that they will be transported to the new world, with a new vision."

"What new world?"

"A world on which the Laws of Time and Space are followed to the nth degree. The crime-less world. The peaceful world. The perfect world."

"Such a world doesn't exist, and will never exist. You should know that. That's why we have the 'Laws of Time and Space' in the first place."

"We shall call it: 'Absolution' and it will be good." To Rose, the woman looks slightly insane. To the Doctor, she looks completely psychotic. She has a look in her eyes that Rose probably doesn't recognise, and why should she – she's only twenty years old. The Doctor's been around a lot longer, and he's seen mad people and power-hungry people and evil people many times over. And this woman, for whatever reason, had lost her sanity a long time ago.

"Why them?"

"They have such...such _simple _brains. Easy to manipulate. Their thoughts and memories will be replaced. And if it works, we will spread the message across the stars that a new world has been born, a better world. And many more will volunteer. Including you humans," she says, pointing at the Doctor.

"I'm not human," he replies.

"Then what are you?"

"I'm a Time Lord. And I won't let you do this. This is wrong. What if they don't want to forget their lives, eh? You can't force them. It's just...wrong."

"You can't be a Time Lord. They...they are all dead. They died, in the great Time War! Do not lie to me!" the woman shrieks in disbelief.

"I am. I am the only one left. I survived the War; I _ended_ the War."

"Impossible!" the woman declares.

"My middle name," he winks.

"Well. I don't know. But...if you are who you say...then surely you would want to be processed, hmmm? All the horror that you must have seen. All your people _dying _at your feet..."

Rose watches as the Doctor visibly flinches. She slides her hand back into his.

"Stop it," Rose tells the woman.

"...All that fire and burning and death and destruction. All those hundreds and thousands and _millions _of species dying out, before your very eyes, including your own..."

"Stop it!" Rose raises her voice, and the Doctor squeezes her hand.

"... You must want to forget that, surely? How can you live with that? You would want to forget."

"No," he says simply.

"But you must see it! Every time you close your eyes - you must see Gallifrey burn and die..."

"Not anymore," he says, and the remarkable thing is, it's the truth. He doesn't. Not since Rose.

"Then what kind of a man are you? Don't you feel guilty? You survive – you _run away_ - when everyone else dies?"

The Doctor is about to retort to this. He's about to tell her that yes, it hurts to think about it, but now he something better to see behind his eyes when he closes them. Something that made him better. _Someone_. But that someone is Rose, and she gets in first.

"Of course he feels guilty. Every day. Every day I look into his eyes and I see the pain he holds in them. And do you know what he does? He doesn't wallow in his own self-pity, or go around hurting people, lashing out in anger at the _unfairness _of the universe. He saves people. He helps them. And yeah, afterwards, he runs away. But he never asks for thanks, never expects any glory for all that he's done. He has horrible, horrific memories imprinted on his memory; but if he forgot them, he wouldn't be _him. _He wouldn't be the man who saves all those lives and stops all those monsters. He has seen so much that he can decide what should happen to those who break these Laws; what is morally right or wrong, as well as legally."

The woman stands still, shocked into silence by the emotion in Rose's voice.

"If he forgot what had happened, he wouldn't be as merciful, or as merciless, or as caring, or as condemning as he is. And he wouldn't be the man that saved me, or changed me, or changed himself," Rose pauses in her monologue with a sigh, "And he wouldn't be the man that holds both my hand and my heart with every step I take."

The Doctor gapes at her, at her flushed cheeks, he unshed tears glistening in her eyes as she refuses to meet his gaze, and he tries to speak, but can't. He feels his own tears threatening to fall. He swallows, and his mouth is dry. She really knows how to make him speechless, he concludes.

"Well. Doctor, you sound like a good man, from what information this Rose girl has given from her... character study of you. But I still don't understand. I need to hear it from you. If you had the chance to forget all your memories and start over, a new man, a fresh start at life, a fresh look at the universe – would you take it?"

"I'm far too old for all that," he tells her, finding his voice once more.

"But would you _want _that?"

"No. Because then I would forget all of the beautiful things I have seen in this universe." He looks over at Rose, and thinks about what he would be like without her. He probably would have taken any memory loss-inducing pill before her, if such a thing had existed. But she turned those destructive thoughts and painful memories into something better. Optimistic. He'd learnt to hope again, and see the universe in all its wonder once more. And he'd learnt how to love. He couldn't imagine not knowing Rose, or not remembering the beautiful moments he has shared with her.

"But you could see it all again! With eyes untainted by the horrors you have seen!" the woman continues to argue with him.

"And that's good, is it?"

"Yes!" says the woman.

"No!" exclaims Rose at the same time.

"If my memory was wiped I'd forget..." he pauses, clears his throat, "I would forget Rose. I wouldn't want to forget Rose."

"Oh, look at that. The Time Lord and his _human _companion. Now you've begun to feel human emotion, haven't you? But you shouldn't worry. Even with your memory wiped, you could see her again. You could fall in love with her all over again."

Rose gasps quietly in surprise at her words, and the Doctor profusely ignores the woman ever said anything.

"You think that it is right to wipe out the bad stuff in life? Cos even if you create a world that hasn't got any memory of the bad things - no memory of war or destruction or death or guilt - it won't be a perfect world. Whatever species you mix together on it, whatever thoughts or visions or whatever you plant in their minds – there is never going to be a place where nothing goes wrong."

"But that is unfair," counters the woman.

"That's life. Life is hard. Life is unfair. Everybody learns to deal with it. Survival of the fittest. Mourning after the death of a loved one. Living on after the separation from someone you care about. It all happens. It's all unfair. But it's the way of life, of _all _life. And as soon as one person on your 'perfect' world realises that – as soon as one person _dies –_ things will be worse than they were before. Because they won't expect it. And they won't appreciate the good things. They will be greedy and stubborn, and when things go wrong, they won't understand, and they'll get depressed and promptly start a revolution. You can't change the way the universe works. No one can; not me, certainly not you. And that's fact. And that may seem unfair to you, but tough; you just have to deal with it."

"Why? Why do you say such things? Have you no hope? No hope for a better way of living?"

"I've already found a better way of living." The Doctor glances sideways at Rose, who nods her head.

"Me too," Rose says.

"What, travelling the universe, meeting danger and death at every moment?"

"You think that's all there is out there? Some of the things the Doctor's shown me...It's amazing. It's beautiful. You don't need to change it," explains Rose.

"Trouble's just the bits in between," the Doctor adds, smiling.

"Then...then... indeed, you decide you have to ruin my vision for the future, Doctor? It could still work. How do you know it won't?"

"I just do. I'm sorry."

"You say this was your vision?" asks Rose.

The woman nods.

"Then where is everyone else? Where's the rest of the Shadow Proclamation?" Rose questions, and the Doctor's impressed.

"They...they tried to stop me."

"I should think so, too. What did you do to them?" asks the Doctor.

"I..."

"Tell me," the Doctor insists.

"I transported them to the uninhabited planet of Acrium. They are safe, don't worry. Probably slightly dazed, but nothing a bit of Yiopiem won't fix," she chuckles.

"What's Yiopiem?" asks Rose.

"It's a sort of alien alcohol," the Doctor answers.

"And aphrodisiac. Don't forget that Doctor," adds the woman, smirking.

"Hmmm. Quite. Come on then. Transport them back."

"Oh...now why would I want to do that? I have a vision _remember_!"

"Which he just quashed, _remember_," says Rose.

"Oh no. He just made me realise that I've got two more people I must defeat before I can fulfil my destiny."

"Fulfil your-" Rose begins to scoff, but the Doctor shakes his head.

"I don't think so," he says. And with that, he bounds over to a panel of controls and sonic screwdriver-s something. With a great amount of rumbling and shaking, accompanied by shouts of protest by the woman causing all of this, everybody reappears in their places, some in chairs, some standing. Those standing all collapse to the floor, weary and confused. Rose rushes over to help someone who crashed their head against the side of a storage unit painfully as they fell.

"It's over," the Doctor says simply, "You can't trick people into becoming some sort of robotic species, with no real feelings or emotions of their own."

Two Judoon come roaming around the corner, and each of them grabs an arm of the woman.

"Wait!" Rose exclaims, coming over to stand in front of them, "What are you going to do with her?"

"BO RO KO FLO TO RO MO TO KO RO GO GO HO!" they reply.

"I'm sorry?" says Rose, who, having not completed her GCSE in French let alone Judoon-ish, was looking rather bewildered. She also couldn't understand why the TARDIS hadn't translated it for her. Add all of that to the fact that there were two _rhinos_ talking to her...

"He said they will imprison her for crimes of extensive nature against the Proclamation. She will be kept there for the rest of her life," the Doctor says gravely.

"You can't do that. She...she isn't _evil. _She's just...a little messed up," she says "No offence," she adds to the woman, who glares at her.

"Rose is right. Can't you at least give her a fair trial? You could help her rather than shun her away."

"Yes. Yes, listen to the Doctor and Rose. I'm sorry. I really am. I'm just a little...scarred by all the things I've seen. If I could have some sort of therapy..." the woman ties to justify.

The Judoon nod, and have a hushed conversation with the Doctor in their language. With a final shake, then nod of their heads, the Doctor turns around, smiles, and Rose loops her arm through his as they walk away from the ruckus they may or may not have caused.

"What are they gonna do to her?" asks Rose, taking a final look around before she steps into the TARDIS.

"They're going to let her have her trial. They are going to read up in the great Law books about what happens when someone who has gone clinically insane tries to create a new world via imprisoning and wiping the minds of an entire species. And then they will probably put her away accordingly. In an...asylum."

"Oh."

"Mmmm."

"One thing though, Doctor?" she asks, as he closes the TARDIS doors and walks over to the console.

"Yeah?" he looks up at her, his hands in his pockets.

"Why were we transported there? Who was it who summoned us in the end?"

"Ah. Erm...I dunno. Must've been...oh. _Oh_. Oh! Cheeky."

He thinks he might tease her a bit. That's always fun.

"What are you talking about?"

"I think...the TARDIS took us there. She must've sensed trouble."

"Oh. That makes sense. But, why the rough landing? And the bell ringing? And the plunging us into darkness thing?"

"I think...I think she probably wanted us to get out of bed, Rose. I think she was fed up. Bored. Wanted to have a little fun of her own. She's cheeky like that."

"Ohhhh," suddenly, Rose is very embarrassed and blushes bright red. She can't believe they were played by his own ship.

The Doctor laughs at her expression.

"Don't worry, Rose. I was only joking! The TARDIS has never been prudish about that sort of thing. Not that she's actually seen it happen before you, but you know...now it has, she doesn't seem to mind. No, it must've been one of the Ruxicans, pressing something they shouldn't have once they got out of their experimentation/prison cell. I reckon that Shadow Proclamation's got the TARDIS on speed dial or someth-"

Rose is annoyed.

"Doctor! Why did you..? You just lied to me?!" she asks indignantly.

"I was just joking, Rose - " he stops as a shoe hits him in the face, "Owww! Ow ow ow! That hurt, Rose Tyler!" he shouts.

She laughs at him and she's not angry anymore. He chases after her as she bolts down the corridor, giggling at herself.

**A/N: Hope you're enjoying the story. Please review. Reviews = LOVED :D**


	5. Going To Sleep Is Definitely Different

**Chapter 5 – Going To Sleep Is Definitely Different**

Soon, he's cornered her in the library, in between a couple of high bookshelves.

"Nowhere to run now, Rose Tyler! Surrender!" he declares, going for his best scary-sounding voice. To Rose, it doesn't sound very scary. She just laughs.

"Oh, I do love it when you get all assertive," she says seductively, winking at him.

"Oh really?" he murmurs, pressing up close against her now, sweeping her hair from her eyes, as he always does.

"Really," she breathes, and captures his lips with hers.

When he pulls back to let her inhale some oxygen, he leans his forehead against hers and whispers a 'thank you'.

"What for?" she asks, panting a little.

"For earlier. For what you said to that woman. About..." he looks at her, and can tell she knows what he means.

"That's okay. Anytime," she replies.

"But...well, just so you know, I would have said something then. Something terribly poetic and romantic, and possibly domestic."

"Oh yeah? You, romantic? Like what?" she pokes her tongue between her teeth as she smiles, and he can't resist sweeping his own tongue across hers. After a few moments, he's finished kissing her again. For now.

"I would have said....weeelll, I would have said something about how I don't feel as bad anymore. About how I've found something better to focus on, rather than the past and how dreadful it all was up until..." he stops, surveying her expression.

"Until?" Rose prompts.

He takes a deep breath.

"Until I changed my life – for the much, _much _better - with eight very simple, yet very impressive words."

"Really? What were they, then?" Rose asks, confused as to where this conservation is going.

"The words were, and I quote, 'Did I mention, it also travels in time?'"

He smiles a gentle smile at her, his eyes imploring hers, trying to express what he feels to her without actually having to utter the so incredibly inadequate words to her. And Rose is so filled up with a sudden force of emotion, a surge of love for the man pressed up against her, that she can't reply to what he said, nor return his gaze with a force of passion equal to his.

So she decides to snog him instead. Which is a rather splendid response, from the Doctor's point of view.

"Fancy some Yiopiem?" she asks him breathlessly, smirking.

"Nah. We don't need it," and to prove it, he promptly kisses her, removing his tie as he does so.

"You're so right," she replies, loving every second of moments like this, where the Doctor shrugs off all his responsibilities, all his control and just loses himself in her. He makes her feel so beautiful, the way his attention is focused on her. The way he surrenders to this - to them - rather than restrain himself from it like he used to.

She unbuttons his shirt and he lifts her vest top over her head and kisses her neck. They simultaneously remove the rest of their clothing, without breaking contact from each other's lips. They've mastered the art, now. Pressed between him and the library wall, Rose feels like there is nowhere in this entire universe - in space or time - she would rather be. And let's face it, she has it all at her disposal now. They could go anywhere, anywhen - but right now, they are here and it is perfect. Her hands are in his hair and her legs wrap around his waist and he grips her hips and he nibbles her lower lip and this is how it is now. Him and her. Her and him. It's different, but it's the same.

And as they fall asleep, wrapped up together in a soft blanket on the sofa in the library where they have spent many an evening cuddling, sipping tea and reading; they both know: the differences and the similarities between their life now and their life before are all inconsequential. Because they are the Doctor and Rose. Rose and the Doctor. This is how it was always meant to be.

She loves it.

And you know what? So does he.

**A/N: Thanks for reading. Sorry this last chapter is so short, but I think it's all that needed to be said now. Hope you enjoyed the story :D These two characters are really the BEST to write about, so I hope this fic does their fantastic relationship justice. Reviews are greatly appreciated :D Another fic may possibly be on its way...**

**Thanks again for all the reviews :) They make me smile.**

**Laura x**


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